Lessons From Auschwitz 2017

Article by Adam Dickson, S6.

"Try and picture 6 million people in one room. 6 million human beings who were slaughtered solely on their religion, ethnicity or sexual orientation. The key factor is that you cannot picture 6 million people, it’s impossible. To learn about a certain individual, learn about their culture, their lives, is far more important in understanding the great loss that was caused by the Holocaust. This year Ruairidh, Miss Moffat and I had the opportunity to partake in the Holocaust Educational Trust’s, Lessons from Auschwitz. Reliving the horrors of the holocaust not only matured both of us as a person, but it fuelled our passion for History and influenced the way Miss Moffat viewed the delivery of Holocaust education. To sit face-to-face with a Holocaust survivor as they recalled on the suffering they were put through truly opened myself and Ruairidh’s eyes. Whilst in Poland the whole group had the opportunity to speak to a Jewish Rabbi who spoke with tremendous passion of the importance of remembering and reflecting the past. He told us that we must remember the events of the past, as it has shaped the modern world for what it is today. He left us with a quotation from George Santayana which is cemented in my mind ever since as he furthermore states: "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it." The Rabbi’s impactful words have shown me how crucial it is to study, learn and adapt from History. To witness the eerie atmosphere of Auschwitz, truly allowed us to immerse ourselves in the horrors of the past. A room full of women’s hair, which was extracted from the Jewish community, along with everything else they owned. The horrifying truth was that everything was stolen from the Jewish community, which was truly heart-breaking to witness.

Returning from Poland we took it upon ourselves to disseminate our experience with the local community. Partaking in speeches with Stranraer Rotary Club, giving talks to the younger students of primary schools. We feel it is important to show people that we must learn from mistakes of the past. We are emphasising that the Nazis were not evil human beings who have emerged from the depths of darkness, but they were in fact everyday people, like ourselves, who had chosen the wrong path. With this we must realise that something like the Holocaust must never happen again, and it us up to us, the future generation to learn from the past and ensure that we respect everyone, regardless of their beliefs, or we will be no better than Adolf Hitler himself."